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Jerusalem and Christianity

We shall be able to enter with you the cave of the Savior,
weep at the Sepulchre, kiss the wood of the Cross,
and ascend...the Mount of Olives.

Saint Jerome to a prospective pilgrim

Jerusalem became the birthplace of Christianity in the first century CE**, one thousand years after David. As the location of both the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, Jerusalem is also referred to as the Holy City of this faith. While Constantine spread Christianity throughout the Roman Empire in the 4th century, the Christian desire to reclaim the Holy Land from the infidels arose a millennium after the Crucifixion, when the Crusaders slaughtered and exiled both Muslims and Jews. Christian reign of the city lasted approximately 100 years until the Muslims led by Saladin finally recaptured Jerusalem, permitting the return of those exiled.

** CE stands for "Common Era," also referred to AD or "Anno Domini."